“Indeed, bamboo is like a man of virtue. From deep and resolute roots, straight and honorable stems extend toward the sky. When a gentleman contemplates the nature of bamboo, only a feeling of integrity can come to mind.” Excerpt from Planting Bamboos, by Bai Juyi.

Since ancient times, Chinese writers and poets have shown a deep appreciation for bamboo. By praising the beauty of exquisitely crafted gardens, these gentlemen created an extensive cultural history immersed in a unique richness of textures. New Pastoralism’s Lecture Hall sits at Yangshan –a town close to the city of Wuxi– and uses bamboo as the main building element in its design.

New Pastoralism’s Complex at Yangshan, Wuxi, is the first pastoral complex in China. Located in Jiangsu –a province in Southern China–, Yangshan town is famous for growing delicious honey peaches in the suburbs of the renowned city of Wuxi, along the coast of the Taihu Lake. As the landmark of the complex, New Pastoralism’s Lecture Hall stands at the heart of the park, perfectly integrated into the pastoral scenery, almost like growing naturally from within.

Composed by three distinctive areas, the venue’s indoors, the outdoors recreation area and an extension towards a vast green landscape; the construction covers an area of 1,618 square meters. Given that the location was originally a bamboo forest; the architect Mr. Zou Yingxi respected the foundations of the area, to establish a dialogue between the Lecture Hall and the surrounding environment through the use of ecological materials, expressing and strengthening the meaning behind the “Site of the Pastoralism’s Declaration”, in the features of the building.

The building displays an irregular triangular shape. Observed from a distance, its body integrates the indoor and outdoor sections of the Lecture Hall into a grey structure that sits in the middle of the view to the park. At the same time, the contour of the area occupied by the structure equals the hypotenuse of its triangle. The upper and lower sections are connected with bamboo stems, as crossed elements that form a hyperbolical shape designed to penetrate the line of vision, forming a transparent space with a pulsating atmosphere. In this way, from every angle, the Lecture Hall presents unique and properly balanced modeling characteristics.

“Lightness” is one of the distinctive features of the Lecture Hall –light materials, nimble structure. On the one hand, the building is made of a steel structure; the arched elements on the upper level make the roof even more transparent to “give way to” the sky. At the same time, the use of sunlight panels allows natural light to penetrate indoors, while the use of fish beam structures solves the span problem. On the other hand, the building uses bamboo as a protective system. Its vertical support arrangement shows a rich and beautiful sequence, equivalent to a rope structure that creates reverse tension, eventually achieving proper balance of contrary forces to offset the structure.

The entire project is based on the concept of “integration”, of interpreting landscapes, people and architecture, people and the environment, as well as materials and landscape. The large number of bamboo elements does not affect air circulation or air penetration, as the holes between the bamboo stems and their thin dimensions produce effects of “permeability” and “integration”, making the pastoral scenery harmonize with the structure, giving the sensation of an open space. Undoubtedly, bamboo magnificently represents dialogue with the surrounding area, delivering a sense of security, without compromising the appreciation of the visual atmosphere, granting the Lecture Hall with a unique aura, almost as if it were growing from the soil itself, as a natural and unobtrusive living being.

From yet another perspective, the fact that bamboo elements are present from beginning to end in the project denotes an ecological nature. The hollow nature of bamboo is cleverly used to hang beautiful bamboo lamps, while bamboo and wood are combined to form an extension of the bar; also, bamboo and strawboards are used to build the façade… The architect transforms bamboo, from a simple local material, into the very definition of an expressive language for sustainability in buildings.

In fact, the bamboo used in the project was treated with specialized processes including straitening by drying, lacquering, etc., to improve the quality and durability of the material, extensively reducing maintenance costs. Additionally, the floor of the Lecture Hall uses recycled floor tiles, showing respect for Nature through the appliance of recycled materials, as one of the principles of the architect is to be responsible for the future, “allowing architecture to interact with its surrounding environment over the course of time.”

“The final interpretation of a building can only be achieved through the provision of definite content into its empty spaces. In this case, this implies the use of natural materials that portray real space on empty spaces, while every notion of reality serves emptiness at the same time.” When the designer harmoniously unifies incompatible design philosophies with the ideology of pastoralism, the result is an amazing example of unification between urban and rural dimensions, generating a new concept of sustainable architecture.

Site and Streetscape – The building is located in the backstreet of the cheongdam intersection, where luxury brand shops, and opulent apartments and houses boast their unique form. It is surrounded by the Hyundai and Gusan Apartment complex and other commercial facilities that are more than ten stories high.

Structure and Expansion of the Interior Space – Abiding by the condition that the mass had to decrease as it reached its higher levels, the structure was planned by placing four of the long span PT beams in the same location on all floors. The remaining structure is organised with a cantilever structure, which led to the expansion of the interior space without any independent columns.

Architectural Regulations and the Double Skin – The site has a precondition by which the Hyundai and Gusan Apartment complex had to be adjacent due to the difference in level of 3.5m from the 6m front road to the back. The main issue was securing privacy between the office and residential space. Due to the setback regulations, the mass had to have an inclined plane or a volume that does not bend more than two levels. In order to have an efficient ground floor, an exterior terrace was created for five of the floors, excluding the ground floor, and covers the entire volume with a skin (transparent material) to create a double level form exterior volume. The open ratio for the double skin was increased for the exposed part to meet the setback regulation, and was able to achieve some freedom in composing the form within the regulation. The terraces connected to the interior space were placed to view the varied scenery of the Yeoungdongdaegyo Bridge, the Jamsil Olympic Stadium, and the Hangang River, according to the character of each floor.

The project saw the restoration of part of the former army barracks, dedicated to horse breeding, at La Remunta in Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona. In agreement with the City Council, part of the enclosure has been converted to a public park and sites earmarked for the development of housing blocks. All remaining buildings on the site are protected.

The old barracks consist of six buildings, four of which were the subject of this project. Building 1 included stables and a soldier’s mess on the ground floor and a dormitory for soldiers and officers on the first floor. Buildings 3 and 4 are single storey, used only for horses. Building 5 was an infirmary and laboratory. The two other buildings that were not part of this project, an old farmhouse and Building 2, will be separately developed as a nursery.

The future use of the buildings is as yet unknown. The aim of project was to ensure the buildings were restored and protected from further dilapidation while a use compatible with the public park is found. Non-protected buildings have been demolished and removed from the site, new roadworks have been completed and the park is already open to the public.

The consolidation and rehabilitation of the existing structural elements has been the project main guideline, in addition to the preservation of the most characteristic elements of its initial function of breeding horses. It is also taken in account the maintenance of the elements in good conditions to ensure they are compatible with common uses overloads.

Underpin foundations have been avoided and perimeter walls have been introduced to strengthen the highest parts.

As for the façades, the aim of the project was to restore the original finish, a plastering lime mortar and mineral silicate paint. The damaged or badly stick coating is removed. The joinery and decorative elements, especially windows’ frames and cornices, have also been rebuilt. The frames, which were substantially modified, are redone and they have recovered the original material, pine wood.

The roofs have been fully rebuilt, maintaining the existing trusses and beams. Thermal insulation has been introduced in some sections, using sandwich panels with wood shavings. Most of the existing tiles have been recovered from the demolition, in order to keep the roof’s original appearance. Inside the building, interior partitions and ceilings have been demolished and finishes, tiles and superimposed banisters have been removed.

Original floors have been kept, as well as some old troughs and animal’s feeders, as an explanation of the building’s initial function. Side entrances and service access points are created in the blind side façades. A window is also built in the first floor’s upper corner to avoid the blind façade’s aspect.

The first phase of the extension of the metropolitan area subway connects Ruoholahti, Helsinki and Matinkylä, Espoo. Upon completion, in late 2017, the West Metro will service over 100,000 passengers every day.

The Keilaniemi station is the first one on Espoo-side of the extension. It is situated on the narrow strip between sea and land, housing and office blocks, parks and a built shoreline. This borderline condition is a distinct theme for the architectural concept of the station.

Both station entrances interpret the hidden, underground rock geometry, and distill the shapes into the form of the building. Initially free standing objects, the entrances will eventually be transformed into parts of the façade of the neighboring project. The faceted form and dynamic windows leave a recognizable impression. The entrance buildings are partially clad in metal from the east. Sheet metal, a high stone pedestal and glass surfaces share the same surface in the faceted geometry. From the west, the buildings have a simple metal grille façade.

The platform level in Keilaniemi takes some visual and atmospheric cues from the above ground hub of office blocks. The overall look is sleek and reflective. The end walls separating the platform from the escalators are made of glass. The long side walls of the platform are bound by a partial lowered ceiling made with reflective white painted solid aluminum plates which also improve the acoustic qualities of the space. The LED tube based art work titled LIght Weave by the artist duo Grönlund & Nisunen has been embedded as an integral part of the overall design.

Located in the core of the historic town of Suzhou, China, the site covers about 2,500 sqm, once was the residence of family Bei. The traditional Chinese garden consists of four ancient wooden structure architectures with courtyards built in the Qing Dynasty, dating back over a hundred year of history, and other four buildings built in the 90s of concrete structure. The renovation project aims to transform the historical house into a modern apartment.

For the renovation of the four old houses, all the original wooden structure is preserved with simple reinforcement and restoration. Since the lack of maintenance, the building status no longer suits modern lifestyles, the main focus is to resolve functions that can meet the needs of modern daily life, such as air conditioning, heating system, shower room etc. The red paint from the original wood structure is removed and changes to black paint using the traditional lacquer process, together with natural wood frame of the windows and doors, reflect the beauty and elegance of the old architecture. Materials with natural textures such as stones, walnut wood are used for the interior space, setting a simple and natural tone. For the renovation of the concrete structure buildings, the design goes for a more relaxed and modern atmosphere using pure and minimalist language. Comparing to the old houses, materials with lighter color are used such as oak wood and light grey terrazzo floor. By boldly introducing the modern design into the historic garden, the juxtaposition of old and new shows an interesting dialogue between the tradition and the modern lifestyle.

The main theme of the design is to inherit the spirit of the historic house not just by preserving and restoring its appearance but most importantly by recreating its spatial experience. Even though the house is to be transformed into a modern apartment, we do not want it to be separated into several isolated rooms, in fact, more than half of the space is used as public space, such as shared kitchen, shared study room, art galley, public bars and spa… Apart from the private room, the guests will also have the whole garden as the extensions of their home where they can communicate with the others. The definition of home have been expanded both in terms of concept and space.

The renovation of courtyard is another focus of the design. For the rooms had no courtyard in the original plan, we also set a space used as a garden or terrace, the open relationship between the courtyard and the interior diffusing the boundary between the indoor and outdoor space and at the same time achieved the transition from public to private. The design of the courtyard at the entrance also takes inspiration from the classical garden which seeks to recreate natural landscapes in miniature, we transformed the original parking lot into a modern waterscape courtyard with a sunken seating area in the middle of the water, bringing people closer to the nature and creating a unique view and experience.

The house renovation project is an experiment and exploration of urban regeneration of historic area, by introducing new and high-quality lifestyle into the old architectures, offers an opportunity for the historic town to revive under the modern context.

B.L.U.E. Architecture Studio, founded in 2014 by Yoko Fujii and Shuhei Aoyama in Beijing, is a Japanese architectural design studio specializing in architecture, urban development, interior, furniture, product and exhibition space design. The development of each project focus on creating space of high quality in which the basic elements of space such as structure, materiality and light are particularly emphasized and reinterpreted in order to solve current problems.

Under the trend of “no real estate speculation”, the urban leasing industry has ushered in a period of great transformation. From renting a room to a good house to a desired lifestyle, people’s understanding of life in the city will gradually rise to a new more valued one. As to the proposition that urban culture will become the lifestyle itself, we try to explore the future through a series of research-based residential design practices. Through the “Piston Room”, we discussed the time utilization of the Beijing ant tribe’s apartment space. Through the “Capsule Home”, we’ve thought about the possibility of new space in the city’s extreme collection capsules. In 2016, we had a chance to systematically explore the “living organism” of a complete city, which gave birth to the ” Home on the Roof ” of Shenzhen Yuanzheng industrial park.

The project is located in the area of Bantian Shenzhen, a field of IT companies as an industry area. The original building is a dormitory building in an industrial park. After many years of idle, now dilapidated. As for the first to third floors of the area is used by other companies, we can only use two parts of the existing indoor space, one is the first floor of an independent community entrance, the other is the third to seventh floors of the dormitory building as a living unit. It means that the entire community will not have any public service space facilities. To solve this problem, we found that there are two huge roof spaces on both sides of the buildings, With the roof, we may be able to design a ” Home on the Roof “, where people can run, see the sunset, or just be in a daze. In this way, the community forms a communication to the city.

How to build a living organism in based of the urban renewal strategy situation? How to make a dramatic design? These questions have become the focus of our design. We’ve built a “Geometric Community System” with a yellow “Link Trail”. Through the entrance, a rooftop ring, air track, landscape gallery, and multi-level residential units, the entire residential community like an immersive stage in a city. Like a drama scene extending from the street, the community shares health and scenery with the city.

There is a deep porch around the original skirt building since the typical climate characteristics of Shenzhen, and the entrance lies at the backside of the building. A hanging canopy which is much deeper than the original eave was designed to introduce the flow into the building. The 10-meter-long Perforation plate floats above the flow, leading the flow into the YOU+ community, which also give customers the first impression by the bright yellow from the bottom to the top.

Loop is a symbol of sharing and unity, while the cross represents the brand and the energetic of the YOU+. A new geometric pattern formed by the loop and the cross was designed to create a multiple functional public area on the third-story rooftop. Residents step out from the building to the central circled public space along a lifted platform covered by a white canvas, the diameter of the circle measured at 17 meters. A cross pattern is consisted by four containers in the space. The lifted platform drops a hint of leading to the rooftop because of users walk above the ground, at the same time, the sights of users are lifted to gain the view outside the parapet. Residents have the chance to relax and fulfilled by the luxuriant woods around the field. The four containers are used as reading room, kitchen, museum and dining-hall respectively, by connecting with the circled platform, a multiple functional space is formed. Cool gentle breeze blow through the space after opening the glass folding doors, sitting in the corridors and watching the sunset or playing board games in the containers are wonderful ways to enjoy the elegant sky.

The small central space provides views in different orientations, the space is extended and floating when the users are watching the view from different directions.

Daily exercises are also needed for those ambiguous young couples. The south area is a sport area with same color and materials as the north area. The arrangement of the container changed from the cross pattern to the zig-zag pattern and the outer platform transferred from a circle to an economic 120-meter runway. When looking out from the southern runway, a basketball coach is located at a nearby field and the felling of going all out together getting stronger although they are in two separate space. Running in the sky is much more attractive than stay in the gym when the night falling done.

The low dorm corridor serviced the room arrayed both side before, the doors of the room was located face to face, which created a sense of living together and reduced the life quality. How to change the situation by a simple restructure? We push the entrance door in to the room for a certain distance, it makes all the entrances are hided in the hole and people can only notice the side of the hole which guarantees the privacy of the corridor and avoids the sense of impetuosity created by the endless corridor and the dense doors. Each door of the 95 rooms is framed by the yellow canopy, ground and the wall, the three factors define a private room for every resident and it is a hint for the cozy life behind the door.

Three problems were mainly considered during the design process of the residential unit. Firstly, how to create a multi-tiered living experience in the long and narrow room. Secondly, how to save the room and combine the saving and living function in a single piece of furniture. Thirdly, how to solve the southern climate problem by design. After considering the above three questions, two kinds of layout were design for diverse groups.

The “Room inside Room” was design according to the consideration of the privacy. If a new type of furniture could be design specially for the room, the serval functions of a traditional apartment will be held at the same time including the entrance-hall, corridor for saving, bedroom, living room and balcony. A box with holes are placed near the bathroom to surround a bedroom and the boundaries of the box give definition of the other functional space. The box is not a totally closed room, it was placed at a certain distance away from the wall, and the gap makes all the space connected like the Chinese garden. The sense of occlusion is avoided in this way. As for the materials, the room is covered by cozy wood which is different from the outside yellow paint. The overlapping wall builds a sense of delicate. At last, the box provides serval positions for savings and the users can easily get the things when lying on the bed.

According to the survey, some young people are willing to living alone rather than invite friends to their rooms. In this case, a large and well-functioning room was designed. The bed is the core of the whole room, the balcony becomes the bay window beside it while the table becomes the platform and the sofa is the extended area of the bed. A pure and barrier free cozy space is created due to the integrative furniture.

During the process of the reconstruction, some difficulties and challenges never seen before were shown up. The compress of the design and construction period and the limitation of the original building brings us many problems. For the public area, the usage of pre-cast container avoided the political risk and saved the cost and time.

Urban residential update design is a complex subject, searching the potential creative positive space in the original environment is our strategy. The form is secondary while the background is vital. Learning from the city is to create a multi-tiered city system rather than building a single architecture by meticulous connection and amalgamation. The best residential form is created by eliminating the boundary of the residence and putting it into the city. Castle in the Sky is a typical example of this theory.

Danish architects COBE and Belgian architects BRUT reveal the winning design for Place Schuman in Brussels, Belgium. Located in the heart of the European Quarter, in between the main institutions of the European Union, Place Schuman constitutes the entrance to the EU. The project transforms a heavily trafficked roundabout into an urban space and meeting point. Inspired by the shape of the European Parliaments’ hemicycle, a reflective roof covering an urban agora unites all citizens and institutions of the EU and transforms the European Quarter from a city for cars into a city for people.

Danish architects COBE and Belgian architects BRUT have won the international competition to design Place Schuman in Brussels, Belgium. The competition was launched in December 2015 by the Brussels Government. An independent jury of experts, presided by Brussels Chief Architect Kristiaan Borret, made its choice, confirmed yesterday by Minister-President of the Brussels Region Rudi Vervoort and Brussels Minister of Mobility Pascal Smet.

From roundabout to urban agora

Today, Place Schuman is a heavily trafficked roundabout in the heart of Brussels. Surrounded by the main institutions of the European Union, including the European Council and the European Commission, Place Schuman constitutes the entrance to the EU. In the future, it will be transformed into an urban space and meeting point for the entire EU. The project consists of an agora covered with an iconic roof structure reflecting the square and the people below. A funnel shaped opening in the roof frames the surrounding institutions of the European Union on the square. Surrounding the agora, a large pedestrian area with a continuous pavement will connect Place Schuman to the neigbouring Cinquantenaire Park and the bridge of Rue de la Loi over Chaussée d’Etterbeek.

From roundabout to urban agora – COBE and BRUT to design the entrance to the European Union Image: COBE and BRUT 2

“A parliament is usually closed-off to the public, but Place Schuman will be permanently accessible, embracing democracy and knowledge sharing. Here, all citizens of the EU will be united under one roof. The roof reflects the square and the people below, creating a meeting place between nationalities, cultures, languages and genders. The agora underneath the roof will be designed as concentric circles, inspired by the European Parliaments’ hemicycle. The circles continue in the surrounding pavement, emphasizing Place Schuman as the center of European democracy.”

”Place Schuman shows the change this city is making. We are going from a city for cars to a city for people! Schuman will become a real urban square where residents and visitors can meet. Finally this emblematic spot is given the quality and look it deserves. It is now up to the architects to elaborate their projects together with the residents and the European institutions.

“The winning project as proposed by COBE / BRUT shows a fine craftsmanship as it combines the overall complexity of this mission within a consistent and ambitious project. The new Place Schuman will become a pleasant and at the same time welcoming area. A federating project, just as Europe itself.”

Additional studies for the design will be carried out by COBE and BRUT with a view to submitting a permit by the end of 2018 and starting the works in 2019.

The building in Ostașilor 8 is located in a diffuse, traditional urban fabric of central Bucharest, in which the urban architectural, historical values and the natural environment are protected in their entirety, street texture and built environment alike.

The area has a high living standard and a scenic air and is located at the convergence of neighborhoods with diametrically opposite characters. On the one hand, the limits of the old city center and Cișmigiu Gardens (historically the oldest designed park in Bucharest) point towards a moderate, maybe nostalgic approach, on the other, the proximity of the new and controversial Uranus Boulevard, whose inception has caused a stir due to demolitions of old, derelict areas, pushes towards the exuberance inherent to any beginning.

Taking the architectural standards into consideration, the building had to respond to a brief imposed by the investors whose criteria were first and foremost economically and pragmatically driven.

Thus, following an extensive urban study which elaborated a set of guidelines to which the building had to comply, the remaining task was to analyze the existing qualities of the contextural surroundings, as well as its potential. After the decantation process, the concept, a lucid and urbanistically liable design which had to be valid for the investor as well as the architect emerged.

Our architectural response takes the pragmatic requests of the client into account, tries to be economically rational, without negating the contextual qualities or being blindly conforming. We bring a modern interpretation to the existing built environment, wishing that the new volume enters a natural dialogue with the existent, evading relationships like subordination/oppression or antagonism/mimetism.

Negotiating the urban requirements and the particular vicinities, the mixture of large volumes (ground floor and 6 stories) aligned to a medium sized street, the building takes on one of the themes of modernist architecture, the terraced volumetric.

The building successively retracts from the street alignment while the height rises towards the opening facing Cobălcescu Boulevard, maintaining therefore the height regime of adjacent buildings and erecting as much as the investment is viable.

The building must find its place between strict boundaries – the blind walls of the two neighboring buildings, the street alignment that must be obeyed, and the receding floor rule – thus preserving the natural illumination of interior spaces becomes the main challenge. Which functions can be completely deprived of natural light, what is the minimum light level to create a pleasing atmosphere in the habitable spaces and how do spaces invaded by light have to be configured, remained questions to be answered by the design.

The chosen floor structure is a concrete flat slab sustained by a minimum of concrete pillars which allows for generous areas liberated from structural constraints in a seismically active country; thus the stories become open plans allowing variation in apartment typologies or scenarios of use – minimal or generous apartments, corner apartments or double orientation apartments.

Any intrinsically decorative finishes or textures are forgone. Clean, white surfaces, glass and matte metal are preferred to sustain a sculptural volume and the graphic character of its small units — the Juliet balconies are folded inwards and become small loggias that create a rhythmic façade; the metallic separators between private spaces are extruded and become hard boundaries, the glass railings have a controlled transparency and paint a soft gradient on the façade through the screen-printed dotting, the metallic blinds separating the superior floors trace fine shadowed lines on the recessed terraces.

Estepa is a small town 110km east of Seville (Spain). It is in the centre of Andalusia and well connected to Seville or Malaga, by the A-92 highway or its branches.

The project began by carrying out an extensive analysis of the area which identifies the flow of traffic and its connections with the A-92 highway. The avenue where we are located in, a major road axis that still maintains the character of the old main street that was, connects with the highway in two important intersections on the west and on the northeast sides of the town.

The site is positioned next to a busy junction and it is an imperative to harmonise all possible entrances and exits to not condition the road traffic and the future planning of the municipality. Our proposal is configured as an island inserted within the existing urban fabric as buses are allowed to drive around the perimeter of the station. The design strives to meet the needs of both pedestrians and vehicles.

In a more detailed study, we observed that the site has the following characteristics: a marked height difference of 2.90 m between the diametrically opposite corners, southeast and northwest, a good south facing orientation towards the main avenue and a roundabout in the corner that facilitates the circulation of buses and their changes of direction.

With these premises the project turns into a set of strategies targeted to outline the bus facility. The entrance and the exit of the buses are arranged as far from the roundabout as possible, assuring the fluidity of the circulation and the optimal itinerary in the direction of travel. A new street is generated for the city with the entrance in Senda street (of minor importance) and the exit towards Andalucia avenue (always from the right according to the direction of travel). And the pronounced height difference between these two points is absorbed inside this internal street of the station.

An elegant concrete roof punctured with large skylights covers the terminal and its platforms while facing the avenue on a controlled scale. The section clearly represents the implantation: the public, the buses and the terminal building in the lower level; the prominent cover that qualifies the space looks out onto the avenue; and the height difference with the main entrance is absorbed by ramp that provides pedestrian access and negotiates the change in topography. The lighting and cross ventilation from the south are guaranteed through a metallic lattice that acts as a façade and displays the station’s name with large coloured letters defines de entrance.

The organization of the platforms, five bays for parked buses, not only allows passengers to board and disembark easily but also creates small outdoor waiting areas close to the terminal pedestrian accesses. Within the terminal, the distribution is very simple, the ticket office and the cafeteria are located at opposite ends of the structure with the waiting room positioned between them. Besides the cafeteria opens to the platforms and it is linked to a well-kept flower bed creating a comfortable place to stay.

Materials are simple with natural surfaces, securing low maintenance demands. The main structure is built in concrete which unifies ceilings, columns and floors providing an open and welcoming public space. Within the terminal pavilion is painted in blue to stand out on the massiveness of the concrete, like a box inside a box. This simple but versatile brick and plaster structure, is then open and glazed to the platforms while receives southern illumination through the pedestrian ramp as well. Special care has been taken with the treatment of the dividing wall between adjacent neighbours.

The result is a building designed for the challenge of both mind and body – and to establish a close relation between the building and its surroundings. Placing the sports facilities as a ‘roof’, spanning between the four houses, we create a both physical and mental experience of sharing, as well as a new hybrid between knowledge and movement.

The four individual houses are separate volumes but connected in several ways: the urban space floating into the building at the entrance level, the crisscrossing stairs spanning the triple-height space atrium and the common area at the top floor. The sports facilities at the top floor hovers over the four heavy houses and endows the building with a literally enlightening identity. When darkness falls, it lit up to tell the story of an active environment for education, research and movement – around the clock.

A large skylight draws daylight down on the common square where a number of social and administrative functions are located as center points in the central meeting space of the building. Standing on the square looking up, the crisscrossing stairs experienced as an additional spatial layer in building.